You break out all the stops when it comes to motivational tactics at this point in the summer.

Here was the pitch coaches made for the Vidalia Minor League All-Stars &045; get to the state tournament, and they’re going to a Major League Baseball game. Win it, and they’re going to Disneyworld.

The All-Stars didn’t claim the district title and lost in the finals to West Monroe. But the summer of baseball in the sun didn’t end there as new rules in Louisiana Dixie Youth calls for a regional tournament with district champs from the South meeting runners-up from the North and vice-versa.

Now it’s the South regional state tournament starting Friday in Gonzales. Vidalia faces Ville Platte at 2 p.m.

&uot;As far as I know, this is the first time a Vidalia team has gone to state in Minor or Major League,&uot; Vidalia coach Ricky Bruce said. &uot;Somebody told me they might have gone back in the 1970s, but I’m not familiar with it. I’ve been fooling with it for 10 or 12 years now, and this is the first time we’ve ever gotten past district.&uot;

This team’s success, however, should not come as a surprise since it made runs in All-Stars the past two seasons. Last year’s Minor League All-Stars rolled to a sub-district title before falling at district, and in 2002 most of this same team competed at the state tournament in coach-pitch (there was no district tournament that summer).

But now the team has gotten better, and the five back from last summer &045; Jake Winston, Devin Barnes, Tucker Bruce, Matt Souderes and Corey Williams &045; are helping lead the way to something bigger.

&uot;Last year we had a good-pitching team, but this year we’re a good-hitting team,&uot; Barnes said. &uot;We’ve got a lot of good hitting. Practice, practice, practice &045; every day we don’t have a game except on Sundays.&uot;

Much of the credit goes to head coach Tam Winston, who along with son Jake were out of town this week on a vacation scheduled earlier this year. The hitting has come through a key times for the All-Stars, including that memorable game against Catahoula at sub-district when they rallied from a 7-0 deficit to win 8-7 in their final at-bat.

&uot;We’ve got a good-hitting team,&uot; Souderes said. &uot;It’s better than last year. I hit better this year than I did last year. We’ve had more practices this year and longer practices. Everybody puts the bat on the ball.&uot;

That win over Catahoula merely referenced the team’s maturity from a season ago, Bruce said. The All-Stars had to fight for wins over Delhi and Rayville at the district tournament before getting beat by a tough West Monroe team.

Even then the team didn’t panic.

&uot;We had a couple of games where we lost control and lost our composure,&uot; Bruce said. &uot;You don’t play well when you don’t play controlled ball. I think the guys are playing with a lot of heart. I’ve seen more talented groups not go as far as this one. Tam does a good job.&uot;

Bruce not only likes the team’s ability to put the ball in play but its ability to put it out of the yard. The team has hit a number of home runs this year, including Barnes’ grand slam earlier this All-Star season.

&uot;That was my fourth home run I hit this season,&uot; he said. &uot;I was happy. I was real, real happy (on my first). I jumped up as high as I could. It shocked me &045; I didn’t know I could do that.

&uot;We’ve got four or five guys who can hit it over. We’ve got some others, but they haven’t done it. If they get hold to it, it’s going to go.&uot;

The All-Stars are also part of the new rule this summer that allows teams to go back to a nine-batter lineup after going through the 13-man lineup to start off. It’s a new rule this year, one that Mississippi Dixie Youth opted not to enforce.

The All-Stars have always liked their pitching and defense, two areas coaches thought would be their strongest areas this summer. Jake Winston is the team’s hardest thrower and will likely get the call Friday against Ville Platte.

&uot;When Jake is on the mound, we’ve got a solid defense behind him,&uot; coach George Barnes said. &uot;We’ve got a solid infield and outfield, too.&uot;

Although a pro game or Disneyworld would be great, Bruce said the goal is much, much more simple than that.

&uot;We’ll let them have fun,&uot; he said. &uot;They’ve never been there, and it may be something they never do again. The league has donated money to feed them. We’ll all have fun.&uot;

Added Williams: &uot;I think it’s going to be hard, but we’re going down there to have fun.&uot;